Ok so now tell me, is this really a reason for the government to regulate it the same way it regulates alcohol or other substances?

The United States spends $65 billion in lost productivity and $150 billion on health-care resources annually for morbidities associated with metabolic
syndrome. Seventy-five per cent of all US health-care dollars are now spent on treating these diseases and their resultant disabilities. Because about
25% of military applicants are now rejected for obesity-related reasons, the past three US surgeons general and the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of
Staff have declared obesity a “threat to national security”.

Compared to animals eating only rat chow, rats on a diet rich in high-fructose corn syrup showed characteristic signs of a dangerous condition known
in humans as the metabolic syndrome, including abnormal weight gain, significant increases in circulating triglycerides and augmented fat deposition,
especially visceral fat around the belly.

Ok so now tell me, is this really a reason for the government to regulate it the same way it regulates alcohol or other substances?

“The environmental footprint of HFCS is deep and wide,” writes Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma. “Look no farther than the
dead zone in the Gulf [of Mexico], an area the size of New Jersey where virtually nothing will live because it has been starved of oxygen by the
fertilizer runoff coming down the Mississippi from the Corn Belt. Then there is the atrazine in the water in farm country — a nasty herbicide that,
at concentrations as little as 0.1 part per billion, has been shown to turn male frogs into hermaphrodites.” And we haven’t even started talking
about why the stuff might be bad for you yet. Defenders of the HFCS faith are quick to point to studies contradicting stories that cast the sweetener
in a negative light. Over at the Accidental Hedonist (a blog that supplied much of the substance and inspiration for this article) author Kate Hopkins
puts it this way: The rise in obesity is directly the result of over-production of a government subsidized sweetener. There are “clues” that keep
popping up that suggest health dangers as well. One study claimed livers of rats on a high fructose diet looked like the livers of alcoholics, plugged
with fat and cirrhotic. Another suggests that HFCS may contribute more to fat that is stored deep in the body around the abdominal organs. This fat is
known to promote pre-diabetes (insulin resistance) and to increase blood fats (triglycerides). Two of the enzymes used in the manufacturing process,
alpha-amylase and glucose-isomerase, are genetically modified to make them more stable. University of Florida researchers found that fructose-heavy
diets “can induce leptin resistance, a condition that can easily lead to becoming overweight.” Leptin is a substance produced by the body to
trigger feelings of satiety; it tells us when to stop eating. No wonder that big gulp is so easy to swallow.

Pure sugar cane is good. White sugar that is processed, your just eating something that tastes good but there's nothing good for the body on that.

Pure Sugar cane, now that is something. Try eating that stuff and you won't get enough of it, which is good. So, if your making something that asks
for sugar, go for the dried up sugar cane stuff, it's worth it all the way.

Pure sugar cane is good. White sugar that is processed, your just eating something that tastes good but there's nothing good for the body on that.

Pure Sugar cane, now that is something. Try eating that stuff and you won't get enough of it, which is good. So, if your making something that asks
for sugar, go for the dried up sugar cane stuff, it's worth it all the way.

To be fair, it's unrealistic for a modern day person to be this active unless they lived on a farm or were a professional athlete. Think about the
incredible amount of calories you would burn working on a farm like that. An ordinary person working a average job couldn't hope to spend that much
calories.

There is nothing wrong with sweets in moderation. But moderation does not mean EVERY DAY! I see kids today and they look unhealthy. When I was a
kid...you would have to tie me down in order to keep me in the house....now days...kids spend ENDLESS HOURS playing video games and social networking
and never get outside.

Even though I post on this board...I make sure I get a vigerous workout 4 Times a week and at least 30 minutes of working out the other 3 days...and
you know what....It makes a person feel GREAT! You are not so susceptable to intoxication...you can eat like a hourse and not gain weight....as long
as you eat straight protiens and Carbs from Leaffy Greens and Veggies as well as limiting Fruit to 2 Pieces a day and under no circumstances do you
drink DIET SODA.....as it increased appetite....and never drink anything with HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP.

And FOR GOD SAKES....PEOPLE...WAKE UP! Just because it says LOW FAT doesn't mean it's LOW CAL!
It is better for you body to eat BUTTER than MARGARINE loaded up with Hydrogenized ANYTHING!

As I said before....I EAT LIKE A HORSE....3500 CAL or more but I work out and NEVER EAT ANYTHING PREMADE IN A BOX! It's OK to eat a STEAK or EGGS
or FISH or PORK....animal FAT is OK to eat. Do you know what causes Arterial PLAQ? WHITE BREAD! The Human body cannot process super fined milled
grain....the Carbs in any White Bread turn DIRECTLY TO CHOLESTEROL in a persons blood stream.

These are the things that will KILL YOU or worse...give you a blockage in your CHOROID ARTERY....giving you a STROKE and leaving you a
vegetable...there are worst things than DEATH.....these are those things...............
Processed Milled White Bread, PASTA, POTATO CHIPS, Cheese that is individually sliced and wrapped...IT IS A FREEKIN PLASTIC POLYMER...no kid! High
Fructose Corn Syrup, ANYONE WHO DOES NOT TAKE A MULTIVITIMIN, HYDROGENATED ANYTHING! Lots of Candy and Cake Junk food.

You can eat great food...Steaks and Chicken and Fish and Pork Chops...s long as you eat with them leafy veggies and a wide assortment of vegetables.
Try to stay away from Canned Corn and Peas as well as Potatos.
And read juice labels...many juices are not using Corn Syrup anymore and O.J. is always a good choice as is a SLICE OF LEMON WITH A SHOT OF
TEQUILLIA....for us older folks...two shots a day or some wine or lite beer...the alchohol keeps the Arteries Clean! LOL! Split Infinity

and well, there was a time when I did actually only eat a meal every couple of days.....

tax my sugar???
ya, go ahead and try it and see if I don't sue!!!
I spend 8 hours every day doing what I can only describe as arobic exercise at work, come home and spend a good part of the rest of my day taking care
of home and hearth!!!
anyone want to take a guess what happens when you burn more calaries than you take in on a regular basis?????

well, your body starts breaking down your muscles, and you end up with a paper thin adomen and then end up with a hernia from pushing thick arse ink
through a screen, and then you end up screwing with the doctors for over a year, spending a ton of money you won't earn for a couple of years while
still going to work and pushing think arsed ink through a screen as part of this arobic exercise for 8 hours five days a week!!!

there wasn't as many fat people, there wasn't as many asthmatics, there wasn't as much cancer while I was growing up and well, most of the adults
around me smoked, we ate fried foods that were cooked in lard, drank whole fat milk, ate real eggs, had plenty of sugar on our cereal, and real
butter!!!!

it's not people's diets, it's all the chemicals, most I'd venture not even 50 years old, that have been introduced into our environment, added to
our food, used to make everything from our homes to our blankets and clothes, that hadn't even been studied much before allowed to bombard us at
every angle!!!
ya see while I was growing up, concern started growing over all the pollution that was being dumped in our waterways and landfills, the gov't passed
laws requiring companies to dispose of such toxins properly, which the corps found to be very expensive, so they proceeded to work on a way to use
these toxins in the production of our products, so they could turn them into a profit instead of a expense!!!

ya, poison the people then gripe and complain to them about how unhealthy they are.....
it's a screwed up world....a screwed up society!!

For years the federal government has subsidized corn to the tune of several billion dollars a year.

Intake of HFCS has increased from .6 pounds per person per year in the 1970s to 73.5 pounds per person in 2007. This represents an alarming 12,250%
increase in consumption over just a few decades. Government intervention in the free market through crop subsidies has led to a disastrous change in
what Americans eat. Though many other policies would have to be changed with it, the dismantling of crop subsidies would be a healthy start to
breaking up corporate agriculture conglomerates, and it would encourage diversity in American farming. Better food would lead to better health.

It's funny, I was at Whole Foods today. I always feel so good when I am in a health food store. Yesterday I had carrot juice. And the organic food
buffet is pretty interesting. The timing of this thread is interesting for me, and hubby is on a health kick now too.

I see the graph that you have produced showing that the incidence of obesity is growing in America. But I have a question:

In 1998, the World Health Organization changed the definition of obesity by decreasing the BMI at which a person is considered obese. Generally, a
person in 1998 would have to wiegh 20 lbs less than he did in 1997 to avoid being considered obese.

So are we looking at an obesity crisis OR are we looking at an Orwellian change in the definition of obesity in order to fund a propaganda campaign
which will allow the government to tax food and intrude into the private lives of their citizens?

PS - the medical definition of diabetes was also changed in 1998. The blood sugar level at which a person would be diagnosed as a diabetic was
lowered by a full point.

I see the graph that you have produced showing that the incidence of obesity is growing in America. But I have a question:

In 1998, the World Health Organization changed the definition of obesity by decreasing the BMI at which a person is considered obese. Generally, a
person in 1998 would have to wiegh 20 lbs less than he did in 1997 to avoid being considered obese.

So are we looking at an obesity crisis OR are we looking at an Orwellian change in the definition of obesity in order to fund a propaganda campaign
which will allow the government to tax food and intrude into the private lives of their citizens?

PS - the medical definition of diabetes was also changed in 1998. The blood sugar level at which a person would be diagnosed as a diabetic was
lowered by a full point.

Indeed, Australia, which is awash in cheap sugar but consumes little high-fructose corn syrup, has obesity patterns similar to those in the United
States. The authors note that: Australia and the United States both have high and rising obesity rates, but opposite sugar policies. Sugar is the
major sweetener consumed in Australia, not HFCS, and there are essentially no distortions in its program.

One study estimated that between 280 000 and 325 000 deaths annually in the United States could be attributed to obesity.3 More than 80% of these
deaths occur among people with a body mass index (BMI) >30 kg/m2. The increase in death from obesity has been documented in a number of studies from
around the world (Table 1).

It's funny, I was at Whole Foods today. I always feel so good when I am in a health food store. Yesterday I had carrot juice. And the organic food
buffet is pretty interesting. The timing of this thread is interesting for me, and hubby is on a health kick now too.

Take it from me....those organic food places lie their ASSES OFF! I grow my own organic garden in the spring, summer and fall....and I still have
Brussel Sprouts out there as they will survive a mellow winter. Whole foods is a joke and expensive to...I know alot about gardening. If you want to
find out how to grow one that takes care of itself and no weeding involved...PM me and I will tell you.

Health kicks are NOT HEALTHY! What He needs to do is change what he eats permanantly...but like I said...I EAT LIKE A HORSE....a CARNIVEROUS HORSE!
LOL! He will love the food choices and gain lots of muscle...he will have to excersize...at the very least...walk every day....then maybe start so
low level weight training or in my case....I swim a MILE 3 times a week in several month stretches to get me ready for SCUBA.

You don't have to be that active...but if he eats anything a CHIMP could eat....he will loose weight fast...caloric intake is not so much of an issue
because the more Protein or Meat in ones diet....the Higher that persons Metabalizm will run so he will burn cals just sitting around. Split
Infinity

Calories are fake in my opinion, they set some ingredients on fire and see how hot the water next to it gets.

first off, your stomach doesn't set things on FIRE on that scale or in that way!

also, everybody POOPS! you poop out lots of stuff! you don't keep everything you put in, and everybody's body is different. so calories are
subjective opinions based on crapped scientific data.

you can put a number on food, but you can't account for the variables of individuality and digestion and waste.

fat is good for you people! animal fat and butter and olive oil and coconut oil are GOOD for you in the right amounts, you can eat alot and be fine,
heart disease takes advantage of cholesterol, not the other way around.

bad things cause heart disease like eating nasty hydrogenated oils and chemicals, and then that takes the cholesterol in your blood and uses it
against you in a way.

This content community relies on user-generated content from our member contributors. The opinions of our members are not those of site ownership who maintains strict editorial agnosticism and simply provides a collaborative venue for free expression.